Definitely Not
by Silva Harpstring
Summary: The new DADA professor faces a year of trying to reteach Gilderoy Lockhart everything he's supposed to know and falling in love with Severus Snape, the person determined to make her life miserable. Don't expect any happy endings, folks. I'm going for real
1. First Class Gone Horribly Awry

Disclaimer: All characters, places and concepts in this fic were not made up by me except for the ones that were made up by me. Beware, this fic was written by a very bored person, indeed.

Chapter 1

Dear Diary,

Today marks the first day of work at Hogwarts. I cannot express in words how nervous I am. Apparently, this post is cursed, which doesn't help the nerves. I can't believe I'm not going to be allowed to wear jeans. I'm so unused to wearing full robes; I don't know how I shall handle it. Above all else, I am terrified about meeting my co-workers. Of course, I have met them before, but when they are in their own habitat, they become most fierce. God help me.

All her life, Athena Llelwyn had been the odd one out. Everyone she ever loved had died, which led her to believe that she could kill people with her mind. Unfortunately, she could do very little with her mind, let alone kill people. Although she truly wished to be a great Occlumens, she found the task too hard to bear, and very often misinterpreted whatever messages she received via brainwaves. She was barred from studying occlumency after mistaking a wizard's cry for help from a manticore into an order for macaroni and cheese. She was, needless to say, working as a waitress at the time.

Among her bizarre pastimes, Athena was completely in awe of muggles, and although she was pure blood, spent a lot of her life in the muggle world, listening to muggle music, watching muggle TV and living off fish and chips.

But when an old family friend, Albus Dumbledore, was desperate for a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Athena decided her hibernation from magic was due for an end, and she went back to teach the only art she was any good at.

Currently she wished she was back at her flat watching 'The Vicar of Dibley' in her pyjamas instead of standing in the Great Hall wearing the most uncomfortable shoes known to man.

"Breath." She whispered to herself as she crossed through the hall. She hadn't been here in such a long time. Though she promised to, she never returned to her old school, and now it seemed to her that nothing had changed. For a split second, she was that same, gawky fourth year that had walked through this same hall so long ago.

"Professor Llelwyn." Albus Dumbledore had snuck up on her while she basked in her childhood.

"Albus!" Athena gasped, clutching her heart. "You frightened me."

Dumbledore smiled with a twinkle in his aged eyes. "It's not very reassuring that a Defence Against the Dark Arts professor would be frightened by an old man in a pointy hat."

"Well, you know, as I child I was frightened of most types of llamas." Athena replied. Wrong thing to say. Idiot, idiot, idiot.

"Really?" he asked, assuring her towards the staff table. "I wasn't aware that there was more than one type of llama."

Athena stepped forward, taking her seat between Minerva McGonagall and Dumbledore. "Oh, yes, there are all kind of-…"

She was cut off in her conversation by the black haired man on Dumbledore's other side. 'How rude.' Athena thought, sneering. It's not like different types of llama was important, but it was the principle of the thing.

Athena completely forgot what was going on when she noticed all of the food stacked around her and the fork and knife so conveniently placed that she could eat said food.

"Are you at all nervous, Miss Llelwyn?" McGonagall asked as Athena shovelled a heaping forkful of bangers and mash into her mouth. Athena nodded vigorously in reply.

"Well," Minerva began, "Just keep in mind, no matter how badly you do on the first day, you'll never be as bad as Gilderoy Lockhart."

"Let's hope you're right." Athena said, loading more bacon on to her plate.

"Have you eaten at all in the past few days?" Minerva asked, shocked at the prospect of this tiny woman eating more than twice her body weight in bacon.

"Nothing but fish and chips." Athena replied, pouring syrup. Athena lived above a fish and chips restaurant, and if she promised to spread the word, she would get free fish and chips, all you can eat. All she ever had to do was begin and end every conversation with "Harold's Fish and Chips: If it swims, might as well fry it." Harold's recently went out of business due to false advertising. Sponges don't as much swim as sit still.

"That can't be good for your health," Minerva said, cringing at deep fat fried meals 24/7.

Dumbledore had stopped talking to the sallow faced man, and he now turned back to Athena.

"Pardon my horrid manners," Albus said, placing his napkin on his lap. "Severus had some very important news to discuss with me. What were you saying about llamas?"

Severus. A little 'bing' went off in Athena's head. She ran the name through her head. Severus. Severus. Severus. Well, now it just made no sense. Why did that name sound so familiar?

"Yes…….." Athena whispered, resolving to think about it later. "Anyway, there are a surprising many kinds of llamas."

Severus glared at her out of the corner of his eye. Every year he missed the post. Every blasted year. And this girl was nervous, too. He could sense it, even without eye contact. Plus, the fact she was tapping her fingers about four billion times a minute wasn't helping her case. She was so young. This was just insulting. She couldn't have been older than thirty. Hatred boiled in his veins. This little blonde girl was not going to stand in his way.

Breakfast had finished, and as the students shuffled out to their first classes, the new professor followed slowly behind. As he himself stood to exit, he noticed he was at least a head taller than her, and for a moment he relished the thought of knocking her out, hiding her in a broom closet and taking over the post. It sucked being a professional.

He watched as her golden head bobbed through the crowd and out of sight down the corridor. She had gone to teach the coveted class, and he had to return to the dark dungeons to teach those effing dunderheads things they would never truly understand.

Athena stood in front of the class room, a piece of chalk in her hand and a blank look on her face.

"Good morning, everyone." She said in a voice higher than her usual. "Welcome to Defence of the Dark Arts."

She paused, as if waiting for people to ask questions.

"Ok." She continued. "Today, we're going to be learning the Conjunctivitis Curse and how to relieve yourself of it."

Again, long pause, no questions.

"Everyone find yourself a partner." She said, fiddling with the piece of chalk. "Actually……… this curse is rather painful."

The students that were at first getting up from their seats and stretching their wand hands froze in place and stared blankly at the professor. Athena scrunched up her face in thought.

"None of you are overly sensitive, are you?" she asked, pleading that she wouldn't have to change her schedule.

Everyone in the class turned their heads to look at one podgy Gryffindor boy on the edge of the first row. Athena looked at her placing chart. Neville Longbottom.

"Alright then………" she concluded, her mind racing, "Anyone here have an unusually high pain threshold?"

Again, long pause, no volunteers.

Finally, a hand went up. Athena nodded.

"What exactly are you looking for when you say 'high pain threshold?" a light Slytherin asked.

"Well," Athena said with a smile, "I mostly mean someone who won't go running around screaming 'oh, dear god, no' when I curse them. Someone calm, preferably."

A blonde Slytherin boy stepped up to the front. "I'm not afraid of some stupid eye curse." He said, sneering as if Athena had challenged him.

"All right, Mr. Malfoy." Athena said, reading the name of her chart. The students sat back in their seats, watching as Athena raised her wand.

"Now," she said gripping her wand and pointing in straight at Malfoy's eyes. She didn't notice how many Gryffindors were wearing huge smiles on their faces. "Hold the wand tightly and say 'Conjunctivus!'"

A ray of red light burst from the tip of her wand and struck Malfoy in his left eye. It immediately began to swell; first it grew pink and puffy, then to the size of a golf ball, and the suddenly it was the size of a baseball. In response to this, Malfoy did the exact opposite to what he said he was going to do.

"Oh my god!" Malfoy screamed, cupping his hand over his swollen eye. "What have you done to me? I can't see! I've gone BLIND!"

Athena, meanwhile, was trying to get her wand in between Malfoy's fingers to remedy the wound. "Oh, for Merlin's sake………" she exclaimed, prying his fingers from the sticky, red mass of an eye, as the Gryffindors laughed and the Slytherins gasped in horror.

"You're not making this any better on yourself," Athena screamed over the din, nearly shoving her wand in Malfoy's eye while holding his hand down with hers.

"Visorus!" was accompanied by green fireworks and another scream, and Malfoys eye shrunk to normal as he fell to the floor.

There was a stunned silence.

"Well," Athena said, nervously, "Now we know what NOT to do."

Malfoy got up from the floor muttering something about his father and retreated to the back of the room.

"I guess that's all for now." She said, rubbing her hands together. "Read Chapter One of your books for tonight and I'll see you all tomorrow."

As the students left her room, Athena couldn't believe that Gilderoy had been worse than her.


	2. Pyjama Encounter

Note: Just as a note to all you readers out there, the word 'definitely' in the title is spelled wring intentionally for reasons that will become obvious in the future. Bear with me.

Chapter 2

Dear Diary,

After yesterday's horrid display of a class, I am apprehensive to come out of my room, in fear of somehow starting the day on the wrong foot, and thus causing more trouble for Dumbledore. I have considered tying my bed sheets together into a rope and escaping through the window. This was of course after the attempt to shimmy down the drainpipe, resulting not only in the tearing of my favourite pyjamas, but also very odd looks from the early risers below. Escape is impossible.

Athena closed her diary and set her quill down. She felt better having vented a bit, but that hardly made her feel up to par. She sighed and looked around her room. Her room was drenched in the silver morning light, turning the usually crimson walls to a dark rose. There was an unlit fireplace on the far right, and an unused writing desk close by. Athena's belongings were strewn across the floor, piled up in things that needed to go in the desk, things that belonged in the classroom, and a pile of her own effects that were needed to make her feel at home. She was so very far from her own.

She checked her watch. Still an hour to go until breakfast and she could feel her stomach trying to get out through her throat. She stared at her diary for a moment, trying to decide whether or not to go down to the great hall, when there was a knock at her chamber door.

Athena stood, confused for a moment. Who would be here to see her so early in the morning? She crossed the room and twisted the brass handle to her room and became even more confused when she saw who was standing there.

"'Lo!" He said, flashing a smile that would have been able to light an amusement park. He stood about four inches taller than Athena, and roped around the top of his head was a thick mane of golden hair. He wore robes of deep purple along with a vapid expression on his face. There was no question as to who he was.

"Gilderoy Lockhart?" Athena gasped, at once believing that he was hired to replace her.

"That's what they tell me," Lockhart replied, his smile becoming a bit more unsure.

Athena starred open mouthed at him for a moment. Here she was at 6 in the morning in her torn bedclothes talking to an ex-celebrity with an obvious passion for dental hygiene. She could hardly see how ridiculous it all was.

"Sorry to bother you," Lockhart continued, bouncing on the balls of his feet as if he were an eight year old asking to stay up another hour after his bedtime. "I'm not completely sure where I am."

Athena was about to answer, when Madame Pomfrey came up behind Lockhart and firmly took hold of the man's wrist.

"There you are, Gilderoy!" she said to Gilderoy, "I've been looking all over for you." Gilderoy looked vaguely disappointed at Pomfrey's presence, for he knew it was time to return to the dreary, boring Hospital Wing from whence he came.

"I'm so sorry about this, Miss Llelwyn." Pomfrey said, looking exasperated, "Gilderoy here is very good at hiding."

Lockhart smiled broadly again, looking very proud of himself indeed.

"What is he doing here?" Athena asked, closing the door to her room and walking out into the hallway, forgetting about her pyjamas. "Shouldn't he be at St. Mungo's or something?"

Madame Pomfrey sighed. "Unfortunately, no." She replied, dragging Gilderoy along the corridors as he fidgeted and tried to break free. "They need him to relearn some of his basic magic. He can't remember a thing."

"I DO know magic!" Gilderoy squealed, looking insulted.

"Magic markers are not magic, Gilderoy." Pomfrey replied with an annoyed expression.

"Why would they LIE?" he replied, acting like he had just said something remarkably clever.

"Anyway," Pomfrey said as she stopped in front of the hospital wing and motioning towards Gilderoy, "This is the last day he'll be in my hands. Tomorrow, you professors will get to deal with him."

Athena took one look at the strange man with the light bulb smile and the mind of a seven year old on cough syrup and decided that she had bitten off more than she could chew.

Snape hadn't slept that night. He had been wandering the halls since three AM and had no intention of stopping until it was time for breakfast. There was something bothering him, but he couldn't tell what. Of course, there were so many things wrong with his life; he could hardly pinpoint one thing. He had been denied the DADA post again. He would have to teach Gilderoy Lockhart basic potions. Harry Potter was still alive. His socks were too tight. Everything was wrong.

He listened to the lonely click-clack of his shoes on the stone floors and thought about the pain he was going to inflict on the first year Gryffindors come first class.

And then there she was again. Walking slowly from the Hospital Wing entrance was that new teacher, in cow print pyjamas with a long tare down the right arm. Who did she think she was? Roaming the halls in her bedclothes so early in the morning. He sped up his pace, and caught her right at the stairway.

"Looking for something?" he sneered at her back in his silkiest tone.

She jerked forward as if shocked, and turned to face him. One of her hands moved to conceal her ripped sleeve. It was obvious she had only woken up a short time ago. Her grey eyes were a bit swollen and her hair was in a tangle of blonde curls.

"Oh," she said a bit sheepishly, "I didn't know anyone else was up. Seconds from a clean getaway………" She laughed nervously. Snape did not blink. She smiled eagerly.

"I'm Athena," she said, extending her hand. Severus did not shake it, nor did his expression changed. Athena withdrew it and continued. "That's what everyone calls me, at least. It's a bit silly, I know. And there's also a Minerva here, and that's a bit embarrassing. It's like someone wearing the same dress to the prom."

Her smile flashed for a moment. This girl was not socially trained.

"I don't believe we've met." She concluded.

"I'm happy you've got that out of your system." Snape replied coldly. "I would suggest that you take yourself and your very suitable cow pyjamas and return to your chamber until seven o'clock."

Athena looked very taken aback.

"I am a professor, sir." She replied, "I have every right as you do to be walking about as I wish." She looked as if she wasn't even convincing her self of this fact.

"Well," he said, making it very clear that the conversation was over, "after the stunt you pulled with one of my Slytherins yesterday, I would think that you're lucky to be here at anytime, let alone the corridors at this hour of the morning."

And with that, he turned and left, leaving Athena looking more confused than hurt or insulted.

Snape concluded that it was turning out to be a very good day.

Athena had battled with that greasy haired teacher's words all day. What was his problem? What did she do to provoke that? Eventually, it just became too perplexing and she realized that teaching a class and thinking about something so confusing at the same time was a bad mix. She often found herself thinking about hexes and verbalizing about something she may have said to offend someone.

Currently she was in her classroom, waiting for the dreaded class that now contained Gilderoy Lockhart. Of course, he was placed with the Hufflepuffs.

She was very fond of her classroom. It was a beautiful stone room with high cathedral ceilings and flying buttresses to boot. The desks were all facing a cherry desk with a plush swivel chair that sat in front of a large blackboard. Sometimes late in the afternoon the bats that lived up in the ceiling would fly around to stretch before they took another nap.

She sucked on her quill thoughtfully. Finally the door burst open, and the children began flooding the room. It was easy to spot Gilderoy. He was two feet taller than all of the kids, and he looked twice as nervous as some of them. The moment he saw Athena sitting at the desk he started waving fiercely, and he ran up to the front most desk in the room and sat, eagerly awaiting the lesson and mouthing to the Hufflepuffs around him, "I met her!"

Athena sighed and put on her glasses.

"Good morning everyone!" she said sweetly, hoping that none of the first years were terrified of her after hearing of yesterday's display. "Today we are going to be learning some very basic defence moves, beginning with expelliarmus."

There were scattered oohs and aahs, and something behind Gilderoy's gaze sparked, as if he almost remembered. Alas, the moment was lost, when he attempted to shove his wand up his nose.

"No, Gilderoy!" Athena exclaimed, running towards his desk, "That's not what that's for. Now really, do you need anything else wrong with your brain?"

Gilderoy guiltily pulled the wand from his nose and looked down.

Athena sighed. "Right," she said, "Let's begin with wand movements."

The class went pretty well considering Gilderoy was constantly putting his wand where it didn't belong and all of the other Hufflepuffs seemed way more advanced than he. Every once in a while, the old smug Gilderoy would come back, and moments later he would be a child. It was very perplexing. At the end of the class, Gilderoy approached Athena with a slip of paper.

"Dumbledore asked me to tell you to sign this if I learned everything I was supposed to today." He said, cheerfully.

"Absolutely not." Athena replied, just as cheerful. "You need serious help, Gilderoy."

His face sunk so that the million dollar smile was hidden beneath his pout.

"Oh, blast." He said, scowling. "That's what Professor Snape said too. And that was at the beginning of class."

"Professor who?" Athena asked, thinking that Snape sounded familiar once more.

"The mean one." Gilderoy replied, nearly crying. "He looks like that child catcher from 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.'"

So now the black clothed man in the hallway had a name.

"Well," she said, putting her hand on Gilderoy's shoulder, "You're just going to have to try a little harder."

Gilderoy gave her a look that said something like trying was not his forte. He stalked toward the door with heavy steps, making it perfectly clear that he was not happy. He slammed the door behind him.

"This job is cursed." Athena remarked, removing her classes and taking up her quill. She couldn't remember doing anything offensive, but she was going to make amends with Snape, if only to clear her conscious.


	3. Sorry for Nothing

Chapter 3

Dear Diary,

I'm starting to feel awful about whatever I may have done to make Prof. Snape so angry with me. I have resolved to apologize, and hopefully, he will not only accept, but also tell me what I did wrong. He must be extremely sensitive to be so offended at something I can't remember saying. And I know I haven't been drunk in the past few days. Or have I………

Athena was done with classes for the day, and was ready to sit herself down to a nice hot dinner and perhaps a cup of tea in the staff room to follow. But first, she knew she had to do the right thing. She was going to confront this Snape person, and she was going to make amends. So what if she couldn't figure out what was wrong? People are offended by all kinds of things these days. Perhaps it was the fact that she was wearing a cow print pyjamas. Maybe he was raised in India.

Athena wove her way through the throng of students as she moved ever so closer to the staff table. She went up the marble stairs and plopped herself down right next to Professor Snape.

"Good evening." She said quietly, but cheerfully. She found it extremely difficult to ignore the delicious looking Shepard's pie that sat next to her goblet.

Snape looked up from his plate for a moment, as if she were a nutter off the street, and he wanted to be polite. Athena was not put off.

"I just wanted to address whatever happened between us in the corridor this morning." She continued, completely missing the cold reception. The hall was completely full now, and the hustle and bustle of children talking about whatever they weren't allowed to during the day was deafening.

Snape looked up again and sneered. The yellow lighting of the hall cast a gold hue on his otherwise sallow and gaunt features. "What are you referring to, Miss Llelwyn?" he said after swallowing his mouthful of corned beef.

"I just wanted to say I was sorry." She continued, getting eye contact with him for the first time. She couldn't help but notice how dark they were. Like tunnels.

"For whatever I did." She concluded, looking away. She felt uncomfortable looking directly into his eyes like that.

Snape looked thoroughly confused. "What are you talking about?" he asked, sounding a bit annoyed.

"Well," Athena replied, "I thought you were a bit angry with me this morning because-…"

"I was not angry with you, Miss Llelwyn." Snape cut her off midsentence. "I was simply commenting on your own incompetence. I apologize that my true message was not received."

Athena didn't know how to respond to that. She felt like such a fool. Here she was, apologizing for something that never occurred to someone who was just plain mean. She opened her mouth, as if to respond, but Snape cut her off once more.

"I would prefer it if you wouldn't make such a display again, Miss Llelwyn." Snape said, rising from his seat, crumpling up his napkin and placing it on the table. "I have no time for such frivolities, and least of all for those concerning little girls."

He left the table, and then the hall.

She sat there for a moment, going over the last few moments in her head in slow motion. She was surprised. She was hurt. She had never wanted to swear at someone, but right then she could have screamed a very loud obscenity at Snape's back if she wasn't completely aware of the consequences.

"That bastard………" she whispered to herself, not realizing that she was bending her fork in half as she spoke. She couldn't imagine why someone would act so rude, so mean to someone he just meant. What was his problem? She completely forgot to eat her dinner, she just got up and rushed straight to her room, to write out as many obscenities as humanely possible before she decided to stop and actually mull this over.

Snape was not impressed by this woman's display. She was much stupider than she looked. Once again he walked the darkened halls of Hogwarts, waiting to stumble upon some unfortunate student in the wrong place at the wrong time. It was when he found himself in front of the old gargoyle statue in front of Dumbledore's office that he stopped.

The statue was only a few inches shorter than Severus, and it stood beneath a torch so it looked like a frightening illuminated silhouette against a stone backdrop. Here was one of Severus's favourite places. Late at night you could stand here and hear the whispering through the hallways of the portraits, and it was both eerie and soothing all at once.

"Acid Pop." He muttered, and the gargoyle was devoured by its platform, leaving a stairwell in its place. Severus entered and climbed until he reached Dumbledore's office. The door was ajar. Dumbledore was sitting in a chair by the fireplace, deeply engrossed in a book. Dumbledore had been spending a lot of time in that same chair, lately, and whether he really was reading, or just pretending to read while he thought was on of the endless mysteries of the Headmaster. Snape cleared his throat.

"Yes, I see you there, Severus." Dumbledore said, closing his book and getting up from his seat.

"I have something I would like to discuss with you, headmaster." Snape said, entering the room to stand before Dumbledore.

This room was by far one of the best in the castle. The domed office was full of secrets and mysteries that only Dumbledore knew now, and the portraits of former headmasters grinned knowingly from their framed homes. The moonlight spilled in from the windows, casting a faint blue glow on Dumbledore's tired face.

"I was hoping to discuss something with you as well, Severus." Albus said, his eyes twinkling behind his glasses. "I hope you will not mind if I go first?"

Severus nodded his approval.

"I had a meeting with Gilderoy Lockhart today," Albus said, crossing to the bookshelf to replace his volume. "He said that you failed him for today's lesson."

"He set fire to his potions partner." Snape replied dryly, "I saw precious little alternative."

"Yes, I see." Dumbledore replied, with a chuckle. "Gilderoy failed to mention that. He also said that Professor Llelwyn also failed him for today's expelliarmus task."

Severus couldn't help but smirk.

"It only continues to prove what I have said from the start." He replied darkly, "She is too inexperienced to even teach a child a simple hex."

"She was nervous, Severus, she will do fine when she feels at home." Dumbledore replied. A certain sharpness to his voice signalled that Athena's credibility was not to be discussed any further. "I was hoping that you could help Gilderoy with the expelliarmus spell, considering you and he worked so well with it only a few years ago."

This was what Snape had been waiting for. It proved Dumbledore was having second thoughts about Llelwyn already. By this rate, she would be out by Christmas. He relished the thought of telling Llelwyn that he would be taking over where she had failed.

"If that is your wish, Headmaster." Snape said silkily.

"So you will assist Professor Llelwyn in Gilderoy's private lessons beginning tomorrow." Dumbledore said.

Snape was not pleased. This was not what he agreed to. He opened his mouth in protest, but Dumbledore had more to say.

"If you can successfully teach Gilderoy all he needs to know," Dumbledore said, "I'm sure the recognition would be most brilliant."

That was all Snape needed to hear.

"Of course, Headmaster." He replied a bit lamely. "I will do my best."

As Snape left Albus's office, he felt angrier than he did before he entered it. He was up and alert, trying to figure out how to help Gilderoy, while Llelwyn was probably asleep in her bed, not a care in the world, dreaming vapid dreams full of unintelligence.

In all actuality, however, Athena Llelwyn was wide awake in her chamber, trying to track the code of the man with the eyes like tunnels.

Athena had spent the night sobbing into her pillow, resolving that she wasn't going to let anything get to her, and then sobbing about how she was letting things get to her. By the morning, she had half forgotten the previous night's discussions, considering she had drowned her sorrows with butterbeer and Joni Mitchell records. She was angry at herself more than she was at Snape. By being so upset about what one person thought about her, she was proving to be weak.

"Oh, bloody………" Athena moaned, the bright daggers of morning light falling on her dishevelled bed, her bloodshot eyes, and her hand clutching a bottle hanging over the bed. She had a splitting headache, had 'A Case of You' was playing in her head in an endless loop.

She stumbled out of her bed and threw on the last pair of robes in her closet.

"I could drink a case of you......... and still stay on my feet………" she mumbled, looking under her bed and pulling out her most comfortable shoes.

Today she was going to be brilliant, she had decided. Through a butterbeer induced stupor, she had vowed to herself that she was going to single handedly figure out what the hell was wrong with Severus Snape, and she was going to fix Gilderoy in the meantime. She was to be bloody brilliant.

An hour later, after sitting in the great hall for forty five minutes before realizing that she had missed breakfast and than no one was coming, Athena went to her classroom to meet Gilderoy, who she had promised to give private lessons after he begged and pleaded her, and eventually bribed her by promising his silence.

Athena took the classroom key out of her pocket and shoved it in the lock. Her surprise was apparent when the door opened at the force of her push, and her face looked even more surprised when she saw Severus Snape standing over her desk. He was bent over some parchments that she could only assume were hers, and he apparently didn't notice that she had walked in. She was regretting that she had not paid more attention to her looks this morning. She would have wanted to look slightly less idiotic. Well, kill them with kindness, her mother used to say.

"May I help you?" she asked politely, but not smiling.

Severus looked up from Athena's parchments, but did not act like he was ashamed for prying into her business.

"I have been asked to help you teach Gilderoy in his private lessons." He replied icily, coming around the desk, swooping around like a bat with his black ropes swishing this way and that. "Dumbledore is obviously unsure of your capability to do it yourself."

"Ah," Athena replied, determined not to let this faze her, "Well, don't hesitate to make yourself at home. I'm just going to quickly get some things from my office."

She brushed passed him and quickly hurled herself into her small office, shutting the door and falling into her chair all at once. She felt like she was hyperventilating.

"Must not let this ruin my chances," she said, breathing deeply and evenly. "He's only human. He's just a sad little man with no friends."

She knew that Gilderoy liked her more and was more likely to listen to her than to Snape. But then again, Gilderoy responded very well to fear. Perhaps she wasn't going about this the right way. Was the only way to get to Gilderoy's brain through his tear ducts?

Athena emerged from her office looking composed, but falling apart upstairs. This was going to be scary.


End file.
